The Birthday Tournament
by Rain Darkwood
Summary: It's King Yama's birthday and a grand tournament is being held! But is Yusuke up to the challenge of being a judge? Featuring contributed OC's!
1. Surprise Responsibility

The Birthday Tournament

By Rain Darkwood

Chapter One: Surprise Responsibility

Air parted noisily as Botan sliced through the sky, on her way to Yusuke's place. She descended gracefully, sitting with both legs together on the right side, and saw that the light in Yusuke's bedroom was on. Ever the opportunist when it came to great entrances, Botan smiled wickedly and directed her path straight at Yusuke's open window. With a precision only an accomplished oar-rider could attain, the grim reaper flowed like silk into the room and unmounted, her oar disappearing as she exclaimed, "Nothing but net!"

Yusuke was laying on his bed, his his head buried in a martial arts magazine. "What?" He hadn't seen her top-class performance.

Botan pouted. "How is it you can appreciate fighting and not even notice my skill at flying? It took me decades to master that sort of thing! I swear, Yusuke, you have no sense of sophistication!"

Yusuke jumped in mock surprise. "Well, wait a sec! Only one person talks to me like that... When did Keiko get trapped in Botan's body?"

Botan put her hands on her hips and glared at Yusuke with a look that read pure wrath. "I'll have you know that Keiko's got a good point about your attitude... it needs an adjustment!"

Yusuke ignored her and laid back down to focus on his magazine. "Yeah, whatever you say. You'll be singing a different tune next time you need me to slay some high-class demon with low-class ideas."

Botan's expression turned smug as she crossed her eyes and turned her back to Yusuke. "Speaking of missions, I've got something completely new for you."

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

"You'll be heading to spirit world to act as a judge at King Yama's Birthday Tournament!"

"WHAT!" Yusuke nearly fell off the bed.

"I know!"

Yusuke looked up at Botan distractedly. "Huh? Oh I'm sorry, Botan, I wasn't listening. This journalist, he keeps talking about Maeda like he's the greatest Sumo in history..."

Botan was livid. "YUSUKE, PUT THAT DUMB BOOK DOWN AND LISTEN UP! THIS IS IMPORTANT!"

"Oh, fine... Now, what is this super important and totally different mission you want me to do?"

"You are to be one of the guest judges at King Yama's Birthday Tournament. This is a big honor."

"King Yama's what? And they want me to JUDGE? Not FIGHT?"

"Well," Botan twiddled her thumbs. "This is a competition for fighters hand-picked from the three worlds, and..."

Yusuke interrupted. "Wait a minute, I'm Koenma's personal problem solver. Why can't I compete?"

Botan was nearly wailing in frustration now. "You never want to fight in tournaments anyway!"

"But now I feel like I'm not being allowed!"

"Well, you aren't!"

"WHY?" Yusuke was really turning indignant now.

"Well, government employees are automatically disqualified, for security reasons! But who cares, you're gonna be a judge, that's much better! And you get all the best deluxe accomodations, as a guest of honor!"

Yusuke's look of anger dissolved into curiosity. "Deluxe... accomodations?"

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Yusuke had taken his time packing stuff for his trip, and for him that meant it took a full 15 minutes. He pulled his backpack onto his shoulder and went into the living room, where Botan was watching TV as she waited for him. It was a sappy romance story on one of the movie channels, the kind that Yusuke could never stay awake through, even for Keiko.

"Hey, I'm ready to go. How exactly are you going to take me? ...Don't tell me I'm gonna have to get on your little broomstick."

"It's an oar!"

Yusuke laughed. "Cool down, you sure are easy to set off tonight. Someone a little tense?"

"Well, this is an important occasion, and they are expecting you to be on your best behavior... well, most of them... Koenma knows better..."

"Hey, I can be very dignified." Yusuke thought for a moment. "Wait, are you saying you've been on edge because you're afraid I'm gonna screw this up!"

"Yusuke, let's be serious. You definitely have a tendency to act silly and completely out of line."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Fact is, I've got a seat as judge in this tournament and you don't, so don't go telling ME I've got no class." Yusuke smirked and crossed his arms, apparently sure that he'd won this battle.

Botan turned off the TV and turned excitedly to him. "That reminds me, I'd completely forgotten! You could sort of say that the judge panel is a... theme this year."

"Theme? What theme do I fit into?"

"A Spirit Detective theme of course! This year's judges are you, Hiei, Kurama, Koenma, Koji, and...myself!"

"Oh man, not you too... I'd better get a seat by Kurama or Koji. I couldn't stand sitting through a tournament listening to you or the infant talking all the time... Hey wait a sec, if it's Spirit Detective themed, why isn't Kuwabara going to help judge? And I thought Kazunori was always around Koji, where's he?"

Botan frowned at Yusuke's initial insult, but answered anyway. "Kuwabara has lots of studying to do, and turned down his invitation. HE cares about his schoolwork, unlike a certain hopeless thug I know. And Kazunori will be there, but in the audience. Koji is basically filling in for Kuwabara, and the point system requires 6 judges, not 7... I don't take Kazunori to be the judging type anyway."

Yusuke broke out laughing. "Yeah, imagine him trying to see over the counter! What a riot!" After he finished laughing, Yusuke spoke again thoughtfully. "Speaking of short people, I really can't imagine Hiei agreeing to this..."

"Well, he and Kurama are still a bit in debt to Koenma. Not that Kurama would mind judging the tournament, but Hiei required a little... persuasion." Botan materialized her oar stepped up next to Yusuke. "Are you ready then, or what?"

Yusuke climbed carefully onto the oar and mumbled, "I don't think I'm gonna like-"

But it was too late. The final word of his muttering was turned into a long "WHOA" as he was carried off into the dusk sky on Botan's oar, grasping around her kimono for dear life. She laughed cheerily as they ascended, crying out, "Don't worry, we'll be there before you know it!"

End of Chapter One

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A Note to Readers

This fic is intended to feature several OC's from other writers. 8 OC's are needed for teh story, and I currently have 3 signed up... So if you don't already know, go to my forum, "The Spirit World Lounge", and submit an OC for the great King Yama's Birthday Tournament!


	2. Twilight Introductions

The Birthday Tournament

By Rain Darkwood

Chapter Two: Twilight Introductions

Yusuke shivered as the cold air rushed past his ears, the dull roar of parting air making the normally quiet night seem surreal. But before he could adjust to the radical change in temperature, he found that the twinkling lights of apartment buildings and homes below him had disappeared, to be replaced by soft, drifting fog.

"When did it get so foggy?"

Botan had to shout in order to reply; they were still going at a considerable speed. "You've been to Spirit World before. You know that clouds serve as a floor in many areas."

Rather than reply to this, Yusuke merely continued to observe the strange world around him. Several large buildings were coming into view just ahead, and beyond them the architecture was nothing less than enormous. In the blink of an eye, they sped like a rocket between the rows of buildings, slowing and finally coming to a stop in front of one of the aforementioned enormous buildings, one which was elaborately carved as though from an ancient period. As Yusuke began to recover from the shock of standing before it, he spoke again to Botan.

"I bet this building would win the Tournament easily if it could move."

"What?"

"Doesn't everything seem a bit... big here?"

Botan shrugged. "You ARE in the realm of the mighty King Yama. And I think they would prefer the term 'grand', or 'magnificent', instead of big."

"They?"

"Why, the Spirit World nobles, of course! Hopefully you weren't under the impression that this gigantic place was inhabited by King Yama, Koenma, a few ogres and myself?"

Yusuke took a moment to answer, he still could not help looking around at everything.

"For once... Yusuke Uremeshi, at a loss for words." Botan giggled.

They walked up the long stone stairway which led to the giant doors of the building. The doors were bare; there was no sign of a handle or knocker. But before Yusuke could even approach them, they swung open slowly and soundlessly. From within the building a golden light shone, and Yusuke nearly had to cover his eyes as they adjusted to the brightness inside.

The interior of the enormous building was brightly lit by many extravagant chandeliers, serving to showcase the luxury inside as clearly as possible. Gigantic, silken sofas lined one wall, and a highly polished wooden counter lined the opposite in this lengthy hall-like room. The ceiling which anchored the beautiful chandeliers was so high that Yusuke doubted even Hiei could jump and touch it.

Botan sighed, obviously appreciative of the warm air inside as the doors behind them closed. Yusuke noticed a small dwarf-like ogre scurry from his position manning the doors to an area behind the counter where he could not immediately be seen. Botan sighed again as she stretched her arms. "Welcome to the Hotel Aphrodite, Yusuke."

The Aphrodite's lobby had Yusuke entranced. But within seconds, he recovered and became his normal self; he leapt and lay stretched out on one of the gigantic sofas, grinning from ear to ear. "Deluxe accomodations was right! This place is swank, Botan!"

Botan groaned. "Can't you behave yourself at least for a little while, Yusuke?"

The dwarf ogre suddenly popped up behind the counter, apparently having climbed onto a stool to conduct business. He was dressed in a meticulously well-kept uniform of red, and wore a name-tag which read "Barnabus". When he spoke, his voice was surprisingly deep and calm. "Madame," he said, "I am afraid we are overbooked at the moment, and cannot take on any more guests. The Birthday Tournament, you know."

Yusuke had gotten over to the desk before Botan could respond. "Listen, uh..." His eyes scanned Barnabas' outfit, coming to rest on the name-tag. "Barney...Barney the ogre?"

"Barnabas, sir."

"Well, listen Barney. Obviously you know about the tournament. You're talking to two of the highly esteemed judges for that tournament! I bet you could rustle up some deluxe accomodations now, huh?"

Botan laughed and shoved Yusuke out of the way before Banabas could respond. "Don't mind him! I've got our information right here..." She reached into her kimono and brought out two laminated identification cards, each of which bore a photograph of Botan and Yusuke, respectively.

After examining the identification quickly, Barnabas rang a bell under the counter. A door at the far end of the hall opened immediately, revealing itself to be an elevator. From inside came a much larger ogre, whose uniform did not seem to fit nearly as well as Barnabas' outfit. As he approached, Barnabas gestured to Botan and Yusuke.

"Please take esteemed judges Botan and Yusuke Uremeshi to their rooms. 21st floor, suites five and six."

"Yes, sir." The large ogre's voice gave the distinct impression of a lesser intelligence and clumsiness.

Yusuke and Botan followed the large ogre to the elevator, and stood against the back wall of it as he pressed the "21" button. Yusuke stole a look at the ogre bellboy's name-tag, which read "Bertram".

"Do a lot of hard work here, Bert?" Botan rolled her eyes.

"Oh no, sir. It's a very good job. Barney's mean sometimes, but he lets me have extra breaks and yesterday he gave me his chocolate pudding at lunch!"

Yusuke chuckled, delighted to find somebody else who called Barnabas "Barney". "Yeah, old Barney looks like a pretty good guy, even though he's a bit stiff."

"Uh-huh."

Botan gave Yusuke a "Shh!" gesture, but he ignored her. "Are you going to the tournament, Bert?"

"Oh, no, sir. Only Spirit World nobles can afford that. But I'll watch it on the television with Barney."

"Ah, that sounds good."

"Yeah, we're all full up with nobles and judges for the tournament, so we don't have anything to do around here during the tournament hours, me and Barney. Bareny's got his money on Kaze the Assassin, but I really want Syd to win!"

"Kaze the Assassin and Syd?"

Botan spoke up. "They're combatants in the tournament, Yusuke. I'll tell you all about them when we get upstairs."

Bert had gotten excited. "Kaze looks really tough and mean, but Syd's funny. When she arrived yesterday we talked a lot about the tournament and she even showed me her circle-sword!"

Yusuke scratched his chin. "Circle sword, eh?"

For the rest of the elevator ride, Yusuke made small talk with Bert. Bert didn't know a lot about the tournament, but couldn't be more enthusiastic about what he did know. After a few minutes, they arrived at the 21st floor and Yusuke said goodbye. The hallway to their rooms was not a long one. This floor, apparently, contained only 6 suites.

"So are all the judges on this floor?"

"Oh, yes. These are some of the finest suites in the whole hotel." Botan was examining their keys. "5 and 6... I guess we're at the end of the hallway, then." They began to walk toward their rooms. "Listen, Yusuke, the rest of us judges have already been given information regarding the competitors, so now would be a good time for me to deiscuss it with you."

"Alright, kinda seems like some are famous... Bert talked like they were already well known."

"Well, some are, at least around Spirit World. They were hand-chosen of course, some for their pure ability and some simply as personal favorites of King Yama himself. Here's our rooms. But before we say goodnight I'd like to give you a bit of detail on each of them."

"Alright."

"First, you heard about Syd. Her full name is Syd Jaylor. She's a powerful Neko/Dog Demon, who wields a weapon called a blade ring."

"Hold on, Neko/Dog Demon?"

"Yes, it means that she is half Neko Demon and half Dog Demon. Lord only knows how that happened, they are two demon tribes who happen to be bitter enemies."

"So she's like a half cat half dog?"

"Well, she's humanoid in shape, Yusuke. The two tribes were simply NAMED Neko and Dog. But she of course has characteristics of those species, personality-wise."

"Got it. Who's next?"

"Hmm." Botan had a sheet of paper with all of the information on it. "Next, let's talk about Kageryu."

"Okay, what's Kageryu's deal? Sounds like a ninja or something..."

"Kageryu isn't quite a ninja, but her background is steeped in dark tradition. Suffice to say that she is connected somewhat with a demon called Shigure and even, to a degree... Hiei."

Yusuke blinked in surprise. "Connected to Hiei? Hang on, you don't think he'll judge unfairly for or against her, do you?"

Botan shrugged. "King Yama chose the judge positions himself, from what I heard. If he trusts Hiei to judge fairly, it is not my place to consider the possibility of disagreeing."

"I suppose so... Who else do we have?"

"Well, let's move on to Mariko. She's a traditional Spirit World warrior, and an applicant for the Spirit Defense Force."

"Wait JUST ONE MOMENT. You told ME government employess can't compete!"

"Technically, she isn't one. And she hardly has the resume that other competitors here have. Wanna know how she managed to get involved? This girl had the gall to enter the royal palace and personally requested that King Yama allow her to compete!" Botan looked as though a woman could not be admired more.

"So what you're saying is this girl has balls."

"In less crude terminology, yes. It's obvious that her request was intended to set her apart from the other applicants to the SDF, and it may have paid off. I do know that the SDF commissioner himself, Ursulis, will be in attendance."

"Well, I hope she gives us a good show." Yusuke yawned. "Who next?"

"Rose Garsden. A human, like you. Remember when you were still pretty new to your job? You weren't particularly powerful, but you had potential and resourcefulness. That's what this girl has. She's got King Yama interested, and he may be recruiting her to become an errand girl for him." Botan grinned. "Like how you're an errand boy for Koenma."

"Shut up. What's so special about her?"

"She was raised by powerful psychic parents. They were old aquaintences of Genkai and Toguro. Rival schools, so to speak. So, given that she's been instructed since she was a small child, she is of course stronger than you were at her age. She uses standard spirit orb techniques, part of the style she was trained in."

"Sounds like someone to watch out for."

"Next, we've got Kazuki. He's the strong, silent type. Honestly, not much can be said about him. He's a well-known warrior in Spirit World, and one of the competitors heavily favored to win. He has an impressive list of achievements under his belt."

"Well HE'S not Koenma's spirit detective. I'll decide if I'm impressed after I see him in action."

"Whatever you say. Next up is Tarro. He's another demon crossbreed, this time the two tribes involved are Squirrel and Monkey."

"That sounds like a weird mix."

"Not much background on him either. Not a brilliant strategist, but a classically talented fighter. Also pretty tall."

"You wouldn't think that of a squirrel/monkey would you?"

"How did I know you'd say somethign like that? Anyway, moving along, there's Rihito. Now he's an interesting one."

"Oh, I just can't wait." Yusuke yawned again, louder this time.

"Rihito Mitzuru is a mystery. This guy literally came out of nowhere. Recently he's been involved in several skirmishes in Demon World and came out on top every time. His strength is obvious, but everyone is wondering why he is so strong. He was given an invitation by order of King Yama, and accepted. That's all we really know for now."

"I've got a bad feeling about him."

"So do I, but let's wait and see. I've got a worse feeling about the last one. His name is Kaze."

"Kaze the assassin? Bert mentioned him. Said Barney had money on him."

"Yes, Kaze is an assassin, and a very skilled one at that. It is said that he is the most powerful warrior in "The Sect", a very secretive order of killers-for-hire. His exact heritage isn't clear, because of the nature of The Sect. Nobody knows much about this guy except that he's very dangerous. I suggest you steer clear of him outside the arena, Yusuke. I don't trust him at all."

"Oh, that type of guy always scares everybody. Not me, though. The only reason people like that are so secretive is because they don't want anyone to know how weak they really are. All the same, I can tell he's going to be someone to watch in the tournament."

"Exactly. Though I don't quite agree that he'll be weak just because he's mysterious. Anyhow, that's all I needed to discuss with you before bed. Be sure to get up in time for the ceremonies before the tournament begins tomorrow. That reminds me!" She pulled out an identification card with yusuke's picture on it and a copy of what looked like a schedule. "Here's the stuff you'll be needing."

"Why didn't you give it to me before, it's not like I would've lost it."

"You never know."

"I'M NOT A CHILD, BOTAN!"

Botan giggled and disappeared behind her suite door before Yusuke could yell any more at her. Yusuke sighed and unlocked the door to his own room. As it opened, he found himself in awe yet again. The room was not just big, it was huge. A gigantic bed laden with silk covering was to his left. To his right the floor dipped down a few steps to a circular sitting area with an equally circular couch around a coffee table. Yusuke could see a tray at the far end of the room with lots of sweets and beverages. But although he felt the urge to explore the room further, the soft silken bed called to him. He jumped onto it, and the comfort was indescribable. Pure enjoyment washed over him mildly as he stretched out across the bed. He could roll around all night and never come close to falling off... That was the last thought that crossed his mind before he fell blissfully asleep.

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End of Chapter 2

Next Chapter we'll be starting the Competition! Updates on how the writing's going, etc. will be written in my forum, "The Spirit World Lounge". Thanks for reading, please review!


	3. Confrontation and The Beginning

The Birthday Tournament

by Rain Darkwood

Chapter 3

Confrontation And The Beginning

Yusuke awoke the next morning feeling unusually refreshed. First he checked the clock and saw that he had nearly an hour before he had to head out. Next, he realized that he had fallen asleep wearing his normal clothes and that he hadn't brought any others. Before he had given much thought to this, however, he noticed that a pile of clothing was resting on the circular couch in the middle of his suite, with a note attached. Yusuke approached the couch, enjoying the feel of the soft carpet between his toes (he had kicked off his shoes in his sleep). The note read:

This is your judge uniform for the tournament. You have to wear it.

Sincerely,

Koenma

Yusuke normally would have flatly rejected being told what to do like that, but the sheer comfort of his surroundings had relaxed him to the point that he didn't even care. After taking a shower in the bathroom (which was almost entirely made of beautifully carved marble), he tried on the uniform. It was not like a uniform at all; in fact it was quite similar to a training garment, folding in front and with a belt and very loose pants. It felt as though it was made entirely of silk, very soft and cool to the touch. It was of a light blue color. Yusuke recognized his name stitched carefully on the breast. Seconds after he'd finished putting on the uniform and the wooden sandals that it came with, there was a knock on the door.

"Yeah, yeah Botan, gimme a sec."

He shuffled to the door, still not used to the change in clothing. The uniform was a little restrictive (mostly because of the sandals) but very comfortable all the same. As he opened the suite door, he was surprised to find that it was not Botan after all. Kurama stood loooking back at him, in a uniform of maroon.

"Hello, Yusuke."

"Whoa, hey. Figured Botan would be here about now, trying to lead me around."

"She was busy for the moment, so she asked me to lead you around instead."

"Great," Yusuke growled. "Everybody just has to treat me like a child."

Kurama smiled in his faint way. "You're new to spirit world. At least, new to places like this... You should be thankful for the help."

"I'd like to get a chance to look around. Besides, I do best on my own."

"Well regardless, I'm here to accompany you to the stadium. It's just down the street."

Yusuke sighed. "Yeah, fine."

They left Yusuke's suite and made their way into the elevator. Yusuke was a little disappointed to find that Bert wasn't operating it, but still took the opportunity to beat Kurama to the controls and pressed the "Ground Floor" button hastily.

As the doors opened into the lobby, they immediately felt as though something was amiss. Nobody was attending the counters. An ogre in a cook's uniform, however, was looking terrified and staring upward toward the ceiling. Far above, Hiei was soaring from wall to wall and slashing at the air with his sword.

"Practicing?" Kurama broke the silence.

"Time spent idly is time wasted." Hiei replied simply as he touched back down onto the carpet.

Yusuke broke in. "I was suspicious before, but now I'm positive that you have no capacity for fun. You can't even judge a tournament without a sword!"

Hiei didn't reply. He simply sheathed his weapon and put on his own uniform, which had been resting on the nearby couch. Hiei's was of the same shiny material but in black.

"Why does Hiei get the cool outfit?" Yusuke muttered.

Kurama shrugged. "Let's get going. The tournament will begin soon enough."

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The three of them exited the Hotel, and Yusuke immediately had the impression of being wedged in a busy, crowded alley. Though there were no roads on the cloud-like ground, the street area was entirely full of people. There were many human-like Spirit World denizens, as well as a few obvious demons. Yusuke supposed that these had special leave to appear in this area of Spirit World for the tournament.

They descended the steps quickly, being rushed along by passing spectators who did not realize who they were. But before Yusuke got past the last step, something about the size of a person ran smack into him. Yusuke was knocked down in surprise.

"Whaddaya doin? Why don'tcha watch out?" It was a teenage girl with long, black hair.

"What the hell are you talking about, you ran into me!"

"Huh. Some Spirit Detective." She adopted a whiny, patronizing voice. "Can't even stay on his two little feet."

Yusuke was up in a second, but Kurama held him back. "Don't bother, Yusuke. She's a competitor."

Yusuke opened his mouth to reply, but his eyes were still on the girl, who was no longer looking at him. He followed her eyes and saw that she was smirking at Hiei, who returned her look with cold indifference. Suddenly Yusuke remembered his briefing from the previous night. "You're Kageryu!"

"What of it?" She replied, still not looking at Yusuke. "Been a long time, Hiei. or should I call you Jaganshi?"

Hiei did not even blink. "It doesn't matter." His flat tone suggested he was talking about more than the name.

Kageryu remained unfazed. "Great to see you again. You'll have a good opportunity to see how much I've improved today."

Hiei did not respond. Yusuke opened his mouth once again to speak, but she was gone already. Yusuke dusted off his judges robes, muttering under his breath, and they continued in silence.

The arena was quite close to the hotel, so they needed only to cross the "street" and they were in the midst of the crowd, which was loud with excited voices. Kurama and Hiei seemed to know exactly where to go. Following them, Yusuke examined the crowd and his surroundings with the curiosity he had had the previous night, now renewed. The Arena was huge, and made of carefully carved stone, the surface of which was covered with runes and symbols. They entered a back door which was guarded by a very large ogre who's name-tag said "Bill". Inside was a dark staircase, which curved slightly out of sight ahead of them, so Yusuke supposed that it continued long enough to wrap itself partway around the outside of the circular arena.

The staircase turned out to be as long as Yusuke had thought it would be. After five minutes of continuous walking in the dim light, Yusuke, Hiei, and Kurama stepped into sudden light. They were in the judges' box. Looking around, Yusuke could see the six judge chairs and a very wide glassless window from which they could look out on the tournament proceedings. Nobody was in the box yet, apart from them. Yusuke walked to one of the middle seats and sat down. Kurama took the seat to his left, and Hiei took the seat to Kurama's left. Inside the arena, spectators milled around and a few ogres in referee outfits conversed amiably by the stage.

Yusuke broke the long silence. "You know, after all this 'hold Yusuke's hand' crap, I was the first one here. Technically."

Over the next fifteen minutes the rest of the judges came in and sat down. Botan arrived only a few minutes after Yusuke, Kurama, and Hiei. Almost as soon as she sat down, Koenma arrived and took his place. George the Ogre was, of course, accompanying him. Last came Koji, arriving with his usual air of smug mystery. As Koji took his place at the very end of the row of seats, The head referee ogre turned his back to the judges and addressed the crowd from his microphone.

"Ahem... is this thing working? erm..." He tapped the microphone smartly with his fingernails, causing loud, sharp sounds to echo through the stadium from the speakers. The crowd (and the judges) cringed. "Ah," he smiled, "There we are. Ahem, Ladies and Gentlemen! Ogres and Apparitions! Benevolent spirits of the realm! Welcome to King Yama's Birthday Tournament!"

The crowd roared it's approval. Banners flew in various locations of the crowd, cheering on contenders. Suddenly, lights shone in several bright colors from above the stage, illuminating everything while spinning like a disco ball. Hiei muttered something inaudible under his breath. Yusuke could guess it wasn't enthusiasm.

"Speaking of King Yama, where is he?" Yusuke asked Botan. Her face was yellow, then red, then blue.

"Oh, he isn't here!" she said. Meanwhile her face had flashed green, and then pink and orange.

"What?" said Yusuke. Purple, yellow and red.

"He's far too large. He's watching from far away, I assure you!" She said. Blue, then green, pink and orange again.

The colorful lights began to die down, and the head referee addressed the crowd once more. His voice was hyped and excited. "It is my pleasure to introduce to you... This year's Tournament Contenders!"

The crowd roared once more. Some of them shouted for their favorite fighters. The head referee's voice echoed out over theirs, drowning them out.

"I give you... Kazuki!"

A tall figure with ebony black hair appeared out of the giant doors below the judges' box. He moved slowly, and attempted no showboating. His every movement showed dignity and precision. When he reached the stage, he turned and faced the judges box and moved not a muscle more.

The head referee continued as the crowd's cheers for Kazuki died down.

"Kageryu!"

Kageryu's entrance could not have been in starker contrast to Kazuki's. She burst out of the giant doors already running, and seemed to exude energy in a way that showed she did not feel any need to hold back. Kageryu's long black hair was not quite as dark as Kazuki's,and flowed a long way behind her. She was dressed like a teenager, and her shirt had one long sleeve and one short.

The crowd cheered equally hard for her as they had for Kazuki, some in the stands near the judges box waved a banner which read "Kageryu Conquers".

"And now," yelled the head referee as Kageryu took her place beside Kazuki, "Tarro!"

As the giant doors beneath the judges' box opened for the third time, a very tall figure strode out, with his eyes facing directly forward, at his fellow competitors. The crowd was less enthusiastic about this one - there were fewer cheers, but those who did cheer made themselves heard.

"Dice 'em up, Tarro!" A particularly large fan yelled from somewhere in the stands above the judges' box.

As Tarro reached the stage, the announcer continued quickly. "Syd!"

Sid Jaylor appeared, as fiesty as Kageryu. Though she didn't run to the stage, wallowing in the love of the crowd as Kageryu had, she participated with them equally. It was hard to hear what she was screaming at some of them, but she had her fists flailing around and Yusuke felt it was a safe bet that expletives were flying back and forth down there. She did, however, seem to have a lot of fans, and several banners displayed her name. Finally, she took her place on stage.

"And next, the lovely Mariko!"

The doors opened once more, and Mariko stepped into the arena. She was indeed beautiful, with short, boyish red-brown hair and deep brown eyes - but Yusuke knew from experience that appearances can be deceiving. This one was likely to be as deadly as she was beautiful. She seemed friendly enough, however, and waved pleasantly at the crowd while giving a very small smile.

"Our next contender is... Kaze the assassin!"

This next one used dramatic effect. The doors opened, but nothing appeared. The crowd began to cheer when they first heard the name, but stopped as they realized nobody was appearing. Then suddenly, Kaze appeared in a puff of smoke, standing with the other contenders.

"Showoff," Yusuke said, frowning slightly.

"Hmph." Hiei did not seem impressed either.

The crowd however, burst into applause. "And next I give you... the lady Rose!"

Rose Garsden stepped out from the doorway now, and into the limelight. The crowd cheered as loud as ever, for she was as beautiful as Mariko. Rose had waist length hair pulled into a braid, and was rather short, not more than five feet. "The rose has thorns," Kurama murmered, noting her visibly high power level.

"And last but not least," The announcer said as Rose met the other competitors, "Rihito Mitzuru!"

Yusuke felt an immediate aura of strangeness. Rihito emerged from behind the giant doors, and approached the stage with the calm and smoothness of a well-oiled machine. He did not observe the crowd, which was cheering enthusiastically, but rather took the moment to carefully examine each of the competitors in turn as he approached.

"I got a bad feeling about that guy," Yusuke muttered.

"I know what you mean," Koji replied.

Nevertheless, all of the competitors were now assembled. The announcer ogre raised the microphone to his mouth once more.

"Let the Birthday Tournament begin!"

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End of Chapter 3

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